Fifth-wheel construction.



Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

r l 1 1 l 1 l 1 l l 1 1I l l l 1 1 1 l l 1 1 l l l l i l 1 l K. SMITH.

FIFTH WHEEL CONSTRUCTION.

APPLlcATmN HLED AuG.3,1914.

K. SMITH.

FIFTH WHEEL CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.3, 1914.

1,168,756, Patend Ian.1s,191.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

-KELLER SMITH, or Ammon, MIssoUnr.

FIFTH-WHEEL CONSTRUCTION.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 18, 1916.

Application filed August 3, 1914. Serial N o. 854,803.

To all whom t may concern: y

Be it known that I, KELLER SMITH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Aldrich, in the countyof Polk, State of Mssouri, have inventedv certain new and useful f Improvements in F ifth/Vheel Construction; and I do hereby declare the lfollowingto be a full, clear, and exact description of; they invention, such as will enableothers skilled,

in the artfto which it appertains to 'make and use the same.

` This invention relates to a fifth wheel construction.

An object ofthe invention isto provide a device of this character which will greatly facilitate thev turning of the front axle of a vehicle. w

A furtherfobject of the yinvention is to provide a device whereby'thefront axle will be mounted upon anti-friction 'rollers' in such a manner that the turning of the yfront axle will be accomplished with the amount of friction greatly reduced. Y

With these and other objects in view, such as will appear as the descriptionprogresses, my inventioncomprises the combination and arrangement ofparts as herein set forth and subsequently claimed. t

Referring to the drawing; Figure 1 is a side elevation of my device,with the axle and reach in place thereon.k Fig. 2 vis a upper plan view of the device. Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view thereof, with a lpart broken away to expose the antifriction rollersl.l Fig. 1 is ayrsection on line 4 4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is afsection on line 5-5 of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a fragmental front view with parts broken away to show the cooperation of the anti-friction rollers and the `track on which they operate. l f

Referring to the drawing by reference characters, wherein like parts are indicated by like characters throughout the several views: My device comprises a wheel member 1 which is adapted to be placed on a vehicle in a horizontalplane between the axle and the spring support. This wheel member is of a general U-shape'in cross section and has on its lower edges inwardly extending flanges 2 forming a' slot 3 therein around the inner lower surface of the wheel. This wheel member is composed of two semicircular sections which are hinged together, at 4, and detachably secured at their free ends by interengaging ears 5' which cothe movable operate with a tions together.

It is to be understood that the wheel member 1 is made in two sections so that if it should `become necessary to replace the rollers or in factv any of the movable parts within j the said wheel member that the free ends of the said wheel lmaybe disengaged and the pin 6 to secure the said secsections swungabout their pivots so that j.

parts maybe readily removed andreplaced. F

Mounted onthe rear side of thev wheel l and on theunder face thereof is a pair of rearwardly extending arms `7 having apertures 8 4therein which arms are secured to 'the' saidfwheel member 1 by bolts 9 which extend through the said wheel member an project outwardly through the slot 3. y

Formed integrally with these members 7 is a forwardly extending arm 10 which is inclined downwardly to a point adjacent the center of the said wheel at which place it is bent so as to lie in a horizontal plane. At the end of this member 10 concentric with 'the center of the wheel 1 is an aperture 11, the purpose of which will hereinafter appear.

/ I Securedto the upperface of the wheel 1 Yby the boltsv 9 is a pair of rearwardly extending arms 12 4which are parallel and v spaced from the arms 7 and have apertures in the projection 10. This projection 16 is carried beyond the'center of the circle and is bentupwardlyat its end to form a flange 18 having holes 19 therein.

Extending transversely of the member 1 and secured `to the upper face thereof by bolts 2st is a bar 23 which is provided with an extension 20. This extension 20 projects beneath the projection 16 and has a hole therein. A king pin 21 extends through the laol aperture 11 in the projection 1,6 andithrough the hole in the extension 2O and thence downwardly through the aperture 17 in the prejection 10. 'A flange 26fis formed on this bar 23 and is arranged parallel to the flange 18. The spring 27 is located Aon the bar 23 and secured between the Hanges 18 and 26 by bolts passing lthroughthe apertures in the said flanges. The ends of this spring 27 are secured to the bar 23 by U-bolts 28 .which pass through apertures 29 in the ears 30 which ears are formed on thesaid bar 2.3 at opposite sides of the flanges 18 and 26.

'The king pin 21 which extends downwardly through the projection 16 and ythe projectionV 10 has asleeve 31 encircling the same which bears against the under face of the'extension 20-and the upper face of the projection V10 and maintains the same in their spaced relationship. The said projections are held into contact with theends of this sleeve 31 by a nut 32 on the` lower end of said king pin. e Y f Pivotally supported on the king .pin 21 is a plate 33 havinga pair yof spaced holes in the ends thereof in which is detachably mounted a'U-shaped vclip 3l having shanks projecting through the said apertures and held therein by nuts 35. `The front axle A of the vehicle extends through this U-shaped clip` and is secured therein so that the said axle may have pivotal movement about the Y king pin 2,1. The plate 33 is held in position on the sleeve 31by a collar 31. In order to prevent thesaid axle from wabbling Y and `to maintain it in a horizontal position,

I have mounted in the wheel 1 between the legs of the U-shaped portion thereof an arcuate. rod 36 which is rectangular in crosssection and slidable between the said legs of the said U-shaped member. In order that ythe friction between the wheel 1 and the said arcuate member may be reduced I have provided a series of rollers 37 which are secured to the ends of the said arcuate member atthe opposite sides thereof and at'a plurality of points between the ends of the said member. These wheels are of greater diameter than the width of the arcuate member and are in fact of a diameter equal to the distance between the lianges 2 and the upper face of the wheel'member so that they will bear upon the flange vmembers at the lower'side of the wheel 1 and againstthe inner face of` the upper portion of the said wheel.. When the arcuate rod 36 is slid within the wheel 1 the said rollers bear upon the respective parts of the said wheel and facilitate the movement yof the saidy axle. Formed on the ends of the said arcuate rod and extending downwardly through Vthe slot 3 are two pairs of spaced rods 38 which 'have webs 39 mounted between the members v of the said pairs within the slots 3 and which -webseXtend-downwardly out-of the saidslot 4flanges of connection of below'the lower face offtheiianges 2. The front axle of the vehicle extends through the U-shaped clip 34 and extends between the membersY of lthe pairs ofrods 38 and rests upon the webs 39 so that it will not friction'ally engage the outer surfaces of 'the flanges 2. The axle is held in place between the said rods 38 by plates d0 on the ends of the said rods which plates are held in place thereon by nuts 11.Y

It is of course understood that the tongue to the front axle. Y Y

It 'maybe seen from the above construction that whenthe device is in place upon b 'er 1 andthe' reach members will bev as one rigid structure wheel and -`the front axle `of thevehicle will be Vattached by the U- shaped clip 34 and the. rods to the said wheel 1 in such manner that the said axle will be allowed to rotate about the king 4pin 2l as a pivot.

YIt may be Vreadily seenthatpvI havey provided a'device inwhichthe friction between the moving parts of the vehicle Vwill be greatly reduced, and IV have further providedmeans which will maintain the axle in operative relation during the operation of the device! in such manner that it will be impossible for the same to frictionally-bear upon any ofthe stationary parts to hinder the reach rotation of the said axle. Y

I do not wish to belimited to the particular construction of my invention shown, for it is obvious that numerous changes may be f made within the spirit of the invention without departing from the scope of the claims. j

What isclaimedisz- Y 1. In a device of the class described, a wheel comprising two sections detachably secured together, said wheely being of in- .verted U-shapeformation, inwardly extendthe wheel, a spring support secured to said transverse bar, means to attach the reach rigidly to the said wheel, projections extending from said means, a king pin connecting saidA projections, a vU-shaped `clip Vpivovtally supported onvsaid kingpin and arranged to encircle the axle between the the axle. to the arcuate member. Y

Y2. In' a device of they class described, a lwheelvof hollow formation, an arcuate rody .of the vehicle is secured in the usual manner ythe vehicleor Vfront spring, the wheel memslidably mounted within the wheel, a slotr formed in the under face of said wheel, bolts extending from the ends of said arcuate rod arranged to attach an axle thereto, roller bearings mounted on the said arcuate rod and adapted to bear on the lower portion of the wheel to facilitate the sliding movement of the arcuatemember therein, means to conneet a reach rigidly to said wheel, projections on said last mentioned means and a king pin extending therebetween, and means pivotally connected to said king pin for attachment to the axle of the vehicle.

3. In a device of the class described, a hollow wheel member, outwardly extending arms secured to the rear portion of said wheel, projections on said arms extending within the periphery of the wheel, a king pin extending through said projections, a transverse bar secured to the uppermost of said projections, a flange on said bar, a flange on the adjacent projection, means for attaching a spring support to said flanges, a Ushaped clip rotatably mounted on said king pin and adapted to secure an axle thereto, a rod rotatably mounted within said wheel, means to'seoure the ends of the axle to said rod, and rollers on said rod to facilitate the movement thereof Within the wheel.

In testimony whereof, I aiiix my signa ture, in the presence of two witnesses.

KELLER SMITH.

Vitnesses:

KYLE KIRBY, J. M. MILLER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, IJ. 0.. 

